Chad’s herdspeople map out their climate futures

In Chad, the Fulani-Mbororo herdspeople have struggled to manage their herds under increasingly unpredictable weather patterns.

On the one hand, the Mbororo people have a deep understanding passed down through generations of their land and its climate conditions. They know how to read the signs offered by nature.

Scientists, on the other hand, hold the key to interpreting the impacts of the latest research. If these two groups could come together and pool their combined expertise, perhaps the M’bororo people could maintain their traditional way of life and the scientists would gain from a more profound understanding of the areas.

An innovative initiative led by the Indigenous Peoples of Africa Co-ordinating Committee (IPACC), the Association des Femmes Peules Autochtones du Tchad (AFPAT) and the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), is exploring how traditional knowledge and atmospheric science could be combined to respond to the climate change risks. By bringing indigenous knowledge and voices into the adaptation planning process, the initiative is giving the Mboro people new hope for the future.

Giacomo Rambaldi is the senior programme coordinator for information and communication technology at the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), which is co-hosting Agriculture, Landscapes and Livelihoods Day.